Jeff Giles is the founder and editor-in-chief of Popdose and Dadnabbit, as well as an entertainment writer whose work can be seen at Rotten Tomatoes, Paste Magazine, and a number of other sites.
LEGO Batman 2 won’t be out until next month, but thanks to the good folks at Kotaku, you can get a feel for the gameplay today — and for those of you who enjoy what Bell Biv DeVoe might have referred to as “superhero action on the LEGO tip,” it looks like the latest installment in the franchise not only adds a few wrinkles in terms of controls and capabilities, but adds a passel of other DC heroes to the mix, including (but possibly not limited to) Superman, Wonder Woman, The Martian Manhunter, Cyborg, and Green Lantern. As Kotaku puts it in their preview:
Lego Batman 2, as we’ve covered before, is a new, original, linear Lego adventure that allows one or two players to punch through a gallery of rogues as Batman and/or Robin, changing into many super-powered gadget suits along the way. It is also a massive open-world game, connecting its levels together through an immense and fully explorable Gotham City, the first open environment in a Lego game and one that will let players romp through it as Batman, Robin, members of the Justice League or even some villains. Superman is a show-stealer in the game, introducing free-form flight in the open Gotham City, a switch from the generally land-bound gameplay of the long-running Lego series.
LEGO Batman 2 is currently available for pre-order at Amazon. Take a look at some screenshots from the game (and watch the trailer) below.
Ha! How quaint. Fox is already on to the next dimension, suckers — as they proved with the rollout of “Ice Age Dawn of the Dinosaurs – The 4-D Experience,” a new attraction at the San Diego Zoo that somehow warps past your precious third dimension and powers straight into the fourth, possibly powered by a secret elixir created by mixing dinosaur poop with the desperate tears of overworked animators as they pray silently for the cold, yet gentle embrace of death.
Sorry, what were we saying? Oh, so the newest installment in the Ice Age franchise — Ice Age: Continental Drift — comes crashing into theaters in July, which we’re sure has nothing to do with the launch of an exhibit that combines “3-D film elements from the third film in the franchise with an exhilarating array of synchronized physical effects.” Because really, why else would you go to the zoo?
Before you pack the kids in the van and head out to San Diego and experience the fourth dimension firsthand, check out some footage from the attraction’s debut, as well as some stills from Ice Age: Continental Drift.
If you had to go away for awhile and you could only take five of your favorite albums with you, which ones would you choose? Yes, we know it isn’t a fair question, but that hasn’t stopped us from asking music fans who happen to be recording artists in their own right. This edition of Desert Island Discs comes courtesy of the Okee Dokee Brothers, whose latest LP, Can You Canoe?, is out now. You can preview a pair of videos from the album below — after reading their Desert Island picks, of course!
Paul Simon, Graceland
We’ve been listening to this album since we were kids. It was an ever-present album on family road trips and continued to be a source of inspiration during our high school and college music explorations. We are still amazed at Paul’s vocal delivery. No matter what he sings, it sounds heavenly. The fact that he’s singing outstanding lyrics just adds to our fanaticism. The way he delved into South African music, culture, and politics while making this record has always been a reminder to us that music is more than notes.
Dawes, North Hills
This record is representative of our more contemporary influences (it falls just above Justin Townes Earle’s Harlem River Blues in that category). We’ve been lucky enough to see Dawes perform multiple times as they’ve risen through the ranks and we’ve even had a chance to spend a day talking about songs with them. Their first record taught us the importance of a classic sound and the value of capturing an authentic performance in the studio with real energy. While we didn’t record Can You Canoe? analog like North Hills, we did try to capture as much live takes as possible. You can hear a bit of the Dawes influence on our tune “Thousand Star Hotel” after the interlude.
Gillian Welch, Time (The Revelator)
This record is a prime example of collaboration at its finest. David Rawling’s harmonies and lead guitar are the prefect match to Gillian’s voice. They both help write the songs too, so they’re an inspiration to us as a duo. Plus they write such unique melody and harmony lines. On this record they prove that folk music can be dissonant, harmonious, slow, and full of energy all at the same time.
John Prine, John Prine
This guy knows how to write songs with the perfect amount of tragedy and comedy, and that’s what it’s all about. He’s incredibly vulnerable and honest on this album and at the same time, he doesn’t take himself too seriously. This record proves that good music making requires good livin’ (whether that’s hard livin or happy livin’)!
The Band, Music from Big Pink
We love this record because it essentially takes all our favorite folk song parameters and invites them to let go a bit and wail away at a basement rock party. We love what the Band stood for (Dylan’s “brave knights” when he went electric, bringing musician’s together for collaborations like The Last Waltz, adding a contemporary edge to traditional songs, really great lyric writing) and this record highlights their best tunes and attributes. It was an honor to have Garth Hudson (the Band’s organ player, and more) play accordion on a couple tracks on Can You Canoe? and we really looked up to Levon, Danko, and Richard Manuel too. Robbie’s no slouch either!
Overall, if you’re gonna have just five albums to listen to on a desert island, the most important attribute has to be repeated listenability. All of these albums have that essential mixture of easy-to-understand, yet mysterious enough to listen to over and over. That combination is the most important part to making a good album no matter what genre of music you’re making.
